


Desert Derailment

by Rikkichi



Series: the Fern and the Cactus [4]
Category: Guild Wars 2 (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Developing Relationship, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-23
Updated: 2017-09-30
Packaged: 2018-10-23 04:17:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 16,599
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10712016
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rikkichi/pseuds/Rikkichi
Summary: The Commander doesn't particularly like the desert. He also doesn't particularly like how Caithe is assuming things about his friendship with Canach. Unfortunately for him, there's not much he can do about either of those problems. Especially not when Caithe's words are making him re-evaluate how he sees Canach in the first place.





	1. a seed of doubt

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey there! It took me a while to decide where to go with this part of the series, but I think I finally have it all planned out.
> 
> This part is going to take us through the rest of season 2 of the Living Story, up to the point where Heart of Thorns begins. While there's a lot of game content in that (the stuff with Glint's egg, the memories, that sort of stuff), I won't be covering everything. This is focusing primarily on Canach and the Commander's relationship, so you can go ahead and assume the story content I don't cover is the same as it is in the game.
> 
> I'm going to try to update this at least once a week, but there will be a gap between the end of this part and the start of part 5, because I need to replay Heart of Thorns on a Sylvari character. That's it for now though, happy reading!

The Commander didn't really understand how anyone, much less another Sylvari, could be at home in the desert. Sure, a warm climate was always nice, but this place was dry and gritty and generally uncomfortable. The Commander much preferred the wet heat of the jungle, and he had no problems voicing that preference. "How do you stand it, Canach?"

Canach was nearby, rigging up more explosives in Mordrem bodies. It was disgusting work, and the Commander was just glad that he wasn't the one who had to do it. Though he would later insist on Canach washing up before he got within ten feet of him, he decided. Canach did not seem as bothered by it though, and he just smirked as he said, "What, the heat or the stench?"

"Both, really, but I more meant the heat," the Commander said, "It's just so…dry. How are you not wilting?"

"Some of us don't have delicate ferns like you do, Commander," Canach said cheekily, which earned a scowl from the Commander. A scowl that Canach seemed to want to comment on, because a moment later he said, "Nor would we wilt in the presence of a scathing look. Though really, that one is more like a disappointed puppy than anything serious."

The Commander let out an exasperated sigh before saying, "Look, can you just finish up here? We need to find Caithe and her squad."

Canach made a grunt of approval, but otherwise said nothing as he returned to his work. He didn't need to say anything, that smug look on his face spoke volumes. He had 'won' that conversation, and it irritated the Commander to even think about how much something as stupid as that honestly bothered him. Ever since they had tentatively become 'friends' back at Fort Trinity, Canach had been like this. It was almost infuriating at times.

The Commander decided to take the renewed and redoubled smugness as a sign of friendship. At least Canach's biting comments had a touch of warmth to them, when he said them to the Commander. He could pester Canach about it later too, after the Caithe's squad had been found. With any luck the Commander might have a small bit of downtime before the Pact launched for the assault against Mordremoth.

He had long-since learned not to count on luck alone, though.

 

\------------------

Thankfully Caithe and her squad were still mostly intact by the time the two Sylvari came across them. Caithe herself seemed to be her usual mix of 'amused' and 'mysterious', and she welcomed them with a warm greeting: "Welcome to the Silverwastes, Commander. I see you have my little brother Canach in tow."

Canach just made a disgusted noise as he crossed his arms and looked away, but the Commander responded with a similarly warm greeting: "If we're talking familial relations, wouldn't I be your little brother as well?"

"You would be the little _est_ brother," Caithe said in return, holding up a hand between herself and the Commander, hand flat and palm facing down as if she was measuring something far shorter than she was.

"Oh ha ha," the Commander said with a roll of his eyes, "Speaking of which, I was told that you might be a little _short_ -handed and in need some extra help?"

"It was nothing my squad couldn’t handle, though I do appreciate the sentiment." Caithe pointed out into the desert, to a destination that was pushed up against a rocky outcropping. "My instincts tell me we're close to finding the source of these Mordrem incursions. We were headed in that direction when you found us."

"Excellent. Then we shall accompany you," The Commander said, volunteering both himself and Canach for the duty.

"I was already a part of this, Commander," Canach said flatly.

"Then you don't mind being re-volunteered, yes?"

"Why are you wasting breath on such technicalities at a time like this, pray tell?"

The short exchange was enough to make Caithe chuckle. In return, Canach indicated to Caithe and said, "See? I am not the only one who finds your actions ridiculous."

"Oh, that is not quite it," Caithe said, a smile playing at her lips, "I was more amused by how 'friendly' you two have gotten with each other."

The Commander would have said that of course they were friends, he tended to befriend everyone he spoke to on more than one occasion. But as he had gotten older he had come to realize that 'friendly' didn't always mean 'just friends', and given the tone that Caithe was using he suspected that she meant something much more. Which in turn would have drawn a protest from the Commander, because they really were just friends- at least he thought they were, though now that seed of doubt was planted in his mind and would likely come back to bite him in the ass at the worst possible moment- but thankfully Canach spoke up before he had the chance to. "Yes. 'Friendly'. Now unless you want my _friend_ and I to leave you and your squad here to your own devices, I suggest you stop wasting our time with this talk."

Well. At least Canach had called him a friend. That was a step up.

"Alright," Caithe said, signaling to her squad, who in turn prepared to move out. With several mines rigged up, their search would hopefully be protected from attacks from behind. Now the only worry was an assault from the front.

\---

Fortunately their search efforts were not in vain. There had been an influx of Mordrem to the Silverwastes lately, and the group managed to find their base of operations. Admittedly it was not difficult to see the huge vines and sickly poison clouds out in the middle of a desert, but the Silverwastes were large and this was still valuable intel to have. Knowing where the enemy was meant that the Pact could push forward and defeat them. It also meant that they were one step closer to finding a viable route into the heart of Maguuma. 

Of course, having valuable intel meant that they were a target. And that meant that they had to plan their escape while running around avoiding vines as they sprouted up from the ground.

"We need to send up the flare," the Commander shouted as he lay down another trap, trying to corral the approaching Mordrem in such a way that it made them easier to fight. His magic was better suited for fighting large groups, to be sure, but that was only true when he had enough soldiers to mop up the stragglers for him. Caithe and Canach were talented, to be sure, but it wasn't enough.

Caithe was already preparing the flare, but Canach held out a hand to stop her. "If you do that then you're painting a large target on us," he said.

"Then what are we supposed to do, wait here until we are overrun?" The Commander was already setting a second trap up, close to the first but with enough of a gap between them that hopefully the Mordrem would pass that way.

"He's right, brother. It needs to be done. A Pact chopper will see it and come for us." And with that, Caithe lit off the flare, firing it high into the sky.

Canach had been right, though. The flare may have been seen by the Pact, but every Mordrem around had seen it too, and they began to converge on their location. The Commander threw down a third trap and then backed up to where Caithe and Canach were. The Mordrem were still far off, but their numbers were increasing as they drew closer. Staying on the flat ground was a very bad idea.

The Commander looked around for something that could give them an advantage. They were near one of the many cliff walls, so perhaps they could climb up higher? That would make it easier for the choppers to see them, but it would make it easier for the Mordrem to see them as well. And since some of the Mordrem could fly, that was a danger. On the other hand, having to only fight the Mordrem that could fly could be a benefit to them. Fewer enemies to fight meant that they might be able to last until the Choppers arrived. Provided the non-flying Mordrem couldn't find a way up there, of course.

"Quickly," the Commander said, indicating to the cliff wall, "Let's get to higher ground!"

The Mordrem were getting closer by the second, and it wouldn't be long until they were overrun. Caithe went up first, since she could climb the fastest and could also scout for the incoming choppers. Next was Canach, much slower than Caithe but he managed to make his way up there. Finally, as the first wave of Mordrem reached the group, the Commander scurried up onto the outcropping on the cliff. All three of them could fit up there comfortably, thankfully, and the Mordrem seemed unable to climb up after them.

"Well there's one crisis averted," Canach said as he peered over the ledge at the horde of Mordrem below, "Now what?"

At that moment, several Mordrem Thrashers spread their wings and started flying up to the ledge that the trio of Sylvari were standing on.

"You just had to say something," Caithe said with a sigh, and she readied her weapons.

"Remember, this isn't a fight we are trying to win," the Commander said as he grabbed for his staff once more, "We are stalling for time. Keep yourself safe first and foremost."

"Why yes, thank you for telling me that, Commander. And here I was considering throwing myself off the cliff into the sea of Mordrem below."

The Commander sounded positively exasperated as he said, "Now is _not the time_ , Canach!"

"Alright you two," Caithe said, "Less flirting, more fighting."

"We're not flirting," The Commander snapped.

"If this is what you call 'flirting' then I would hate to see what you call an 'intimate moment'," was Canach's response.

\---

Once they were safely in the Pact chopper, flying away from that damned Mordrem outpost and back to the safety of the staging area, the Commander found the words he had been struggling with all afternoon. And since they were just sitting around and waiting, he figured it was the best time to lecture his fellow Sylvari.

"Firstly," he said, looking at Caithe specifically as he gestured to both himself and Canach, "We're friends. _Only_ friends. You can joke about it all you like, but I would appreciate it if you didn't go starting rumors about us."

Caithe raised an eyebrow at the Commander, clearly not believing what he had to say. But the Commander pushed forward, turning to look at Canach as he said, "Secondly, this is your fault. You need to stop rising to the bait other people set out."

Canach looked particularly offended by that statement. "I'm not 'rising to the bait'. And even if I were, you are just as guilty of it as I am!" 

" **Thirdly** ," the Commander said firmly, interrupting Canach to continue with his points, "Nobody here is to speak of the argument we just had. Not a word of it. We don't need the Pact to see us three as incompetent ninnies who talk about flirting and intimacy in the middle of a battle."

Thankfully, Canach and Caithe both agreed to that without any protest.


	2. Moving On

It was a mess. It was all one horrible, convoluted mess.

The Commander needed to be ready to sail with the rest of the Pact when they made their assault on Mordremoth. While he was sure they would be fine without them- he was just one man, after all, and the rest of the Pact was more than capable on their own- he still felt like he needed to be there, if only for morale's sake. He had struck the killing blow on Zhaitan, after all. Who else would be better to bolster confidence in the ranks than him?

But now he had a dragon egg to track down, and he wasn't sure if he would be able to do that and still make it in time to go with the first wave into the jungle. He could have put off searching for the egg until after, maybe, but that thought lasted for maybe three seconds before he dismissed it. No, this was the last of Glint's eggs. It needed to be found as soon as possible, so it could be taken care of. Mordremoth was the main threat right now, but Kralkatorrik would no doubt use the distraction to his advantage if he knew about the egg. Which he probably would find out about quickly, meaning that the Commander had to move, and fast.

But he needed to go through the deserts of the Silverwastes once more anyway, and since that was where everyone was meeting up, the Commander figured he should give them the news in person. Maybe then he could give them an explanation in person.

Fortunately, the group he was looking for was not difficult to find. Logan even spotted him first, giving him a wave as he walked up to the group. "There you are, Commander! I'm glad you're going with us. You got my mail?"

"I did," the Commander answered, "But unfortunately I may not be able to come with you. Something has come up."

Zojja, ever the expressive one, gave the Commander an incredulous look as she said, "What? You're 74.3 percent of our firepower all by yourself!"

The Commander crossed his arms and gave Zojja A Look as he said, "That's an exaggeration."

"I'm learning how to exaggerate from Taimi, believe it or not." Her tone made it clear that she thought the Commander was in the 'not' category. "So, why can't you come with us?"

"I…" He started his explanation, but he trailed off for a moment. What should he call this? A Wyld Hunt? That didn't feel quite right, and he already had a Wyld Hunt anyway. Valiants didn't just get two Wyld Hunts, it was unheard of.

The Commander glanced to Caithe, who gave him what appeared to be a flat look at first, but he noticed the slight upturn to the corner of one of her mouths. That look he was able to read instantly, and it made him frown. After what had happened before with him, her, and Canach, the Commander was sure he knew what Caithe was thinking. Better put those thoughts to rest, he decided. "I've been given a different mission that I can't turn down."

"What are you talking about," Eir said, sounding both confused and concerned, "We're about to march on Mordremoth, and with Rytlock gone we're already down one. What happened?" Eir, at the very least, seemed to understand the Commander's predicament: she didn't doubt that he had something important to do, but was rather worried about just what it was, if it was more important than fighting an elder dragon. The Commander had always appreciated that about her.

Before speaking again, the Commander glanced around, making sure that there were no prying eyes and ears. This information would be the worst to have fall into enemy hands, and spies were everywhere. "Alright," he said, stepping in a bit more and speaking quietly, "I'll tell you, but you must swear to absolute secrecy. This can't go beyond us."

"I think I can speak for all of us when I say we can keep your secret," Logan said, "What is it?"

That was a relief, at least. Having a few others who were in the know would be a benefit, in case he needed to call for help in the search for this egg. So he took a moment to think over his words before he carefully said, "I had a vision from the Pale Tree, back at the Summit. An important one. Glint had an egg."

"A dragon egg," Caithe said, that tiny smile completely gone from her face, "Where?"

"It's a long story. It was in her lair, but a Zephyrite master took it for safekeeping. And with the crash-"

"-You want to make sure the egg is safe," Caithe said, finishing the Commander's sentence for him.

The Commander nodded. "I also saw a…it's hard to describe, but it looked golden? Some kind of golden city, I think. And I also think he was taking it there."

"If he is clever, then he has survived thus far. But he's in treacherous territory out there." Eir sighed. "But Glint never mentioned she had an egg. I would have..." She trailed off there, leaving the rest of her thoughts to herself. 

Everyone else was quiet for a moment, clearly thinking the same thing as Eir was. The Commander thought about saying some words of encouragement, but he decided against it. He had not even been born yet when Glint had died. That wound was not one he could help with.

Eventually it was Zojja who spoke. "A dragon hatchling could turn into an enemy if raised in the wrong company," she said, and then she turned to the Commander to speak specifically to him, "Of course, you must save it. If it were to grow up as an ally to Tyria, it could change the course of history."

The Commander nodded in agreement. "Exactly what I was thinking. I'm sorry, I do want to stay here and prepare, but."

"It's alright, we understand," Logan said, "We'll hold the front lines until you can join us."

"Thank you," the Commander said, and he gave a cocky smile before he added, "Save some Mordrem for me to fight, got it? I would hate to miss the entire campaign against Mordremoth."

Eir chuckled as she said, "Don't worry, there will be plenty for you to fight too. If you're quick about it, you might even get to help us take down Mordremoth himself."

"Well I should certainly hope so, given that it's my Wyld Hunt and all," the Commander replied, "You'll need me for that, if nothing else."

The Commander looked around the circle at the four members of Destiny's Edge who had quickly become his friends. It did feel strange, without Rytlock there, but it would be alright. Those four- Eir, Zojja, Logan, and Caithe- they were strong. They were united too, and that just made them even stronger. The Commander had no doubts in his mind that, at the end of all of this, they would come out of it alright. 

He could count on them. Everything would be alright.

\---

"Ah, Commander. Good to see you."

Even after all this time, Trahearne's face still lit up when he saw the Commander approaching. At first the Commander had been worried about lingering feelings from long ago, back before things had gone sour between them, but over time he had come to realize that it was just how Trahearne was around people he trusted. He would gladly accept that friendliness, and try his best not to attach it to any non-platonic feelings.

"Hello, Trahearne," the Commander said, sounding a bit weary as he spoke, "Sorry I'm so late. Things have come up."

"Things always come up, that's the nature of fighting a war." Trahearne said, and he set down the letter he was working on before stepping away from his makeshift desk. "Care to walk with me for a moment."

"Of course," the Commander said, stepping aside so that Trahearne could get through, "Lead the way."

For some time they walked, talking of the logistics of the operation and what would happen once the first wave landed in Maguuma. It was easy to fall into that back-and-forth, sharing ideas and making plans. They worked well together; it was what had brought the two of them to start the Pact in the first place. 

Among other things, if the Commander was being honest. Which he usually wasn't, whenever Trahearne was concerned.

"…and Laranthier will be leading the Vigil soldiers traveling with us," Trahearne said, finishing his spiel, "Now I know you are a part of the Vigil too, so I thought it would be best to let you decide which airship you want to travel on."

"About that," The Commander said, trying to ease into the news he had to give Trahearne, "I…won't be going with the first wave."

That was enough to make Trahearne stop in place and turn to look at the Commander, who in turn stopped and glanced away. "You won't be? Why not?"

"Something has come up," the Commander said, "Something that is extremely time-sensitive and that cannot wait until we get back from the jungle. With any luck, I should be done with it before the airships leave. If that's the case, then I will hurry back here and join you. But if it's not-"

"-then you'll have to finish your work there first," Trahearne said, nodding, "This has to do with Mother, then? I can't imagine anything else being so important that you wouldn't be with us."

It wasn't the full truth, but the Commander nodded. "Mother asked me to do this. You know I wouldn't leave otherwise."

"I know," Trahearne said gently, "I trust you on that. We do have a few days left before we go, so let me know if you are able to join us."

"I will," the Commander said, and he turned to leave, but Trahearne stopped him with a hand on his shoulder, which made the Commander look back to him. "Trahearne?"

"This is…not easy to talk about," Trahearne started, and after a moment he pulled his hand away from the Commander, "But before you go, I wanted to talk about something. Something involving you."

The Commander sighed irritably. He had a feeling that he knew where this was going. "Trahearne, we've talked about this before-"

"It's not about 'us'," Trahearne said quickly, "It truly is about you specifically."

The Commander crossed his arms in front of himself defensively as he said, "Well, out with it then."

"It's been nearly two years. I want you to move on, my friend."

The Commander scoffed at that. "'Move on'? What makes you think I haven't been doing that?"

"I know you. Better than most, even. And I know that if you had truly moved on, you would be with someone else by now." Trahearne was speaking honestly, and that made it hard for the Commander to get mad at him for it.

"This hardly sounds like it's 'about me specifically,'" the Commander said, since he didn't really have a good rebuttal to the point Trahearne had made.

Trahearne sighed. "Just consider it, alright? You have a large heart, and I'm sure there are others you care for. Holding yourself back does you no favors. I know things did not go well between us, but that doesn't mean the same will be true for someone else. You don't have to punish yourself by staying alone your whole life. You're allowed to have feelings for someone else."

"You make it sound like I'm some lovestruck sapling, pining for someone I can never have." If the Commander sounded irritated, it was because he was. Greatly so. He didn't like people prodding him about personal business in the first place, but when it was about love, and by someone he had previously loved? It was too much. "I am _fine_ , Trahearne. I didn't need romantic badgering from Caithe, and I definitely don't need it from you!"

His words had been harsh, but Trahearne seemed unfazed by them. Or, rather, he wasn't hurt by them. He looked confused, actually. "What does Caithe have to do with any of this," he asked.

Well shit. "Nothing," the Commander said, and with that he walked away quickly, not wanting to be a part of the conversation anymore. Not even when Trahearne started calling after him in an attempt to call him back. 

\---

Thankfully his group was not far from where he had been. Even if he was stewing in his thoughts, he could get to them and get started with the mission. 

Well, he WOULD have, if Caithe hadn't stopped him along the way. "What do you want," he asked when he saw her, speaking a bit more harshly than she deserved. 

When Caithe answered, it was with a firm voice. "I'm coming with you. They don't know the half of how important this dragon egg is. I do. It's a far better use of my time than watching Eir stare at that young norn over there anyway."

"Eir's not staring," The Commander said automatically, but then a moment later he said, "And we can do this on our own. You need to be here to go with Destiny's Edge. What if the ships leave without you?"

"Then I won't be going with them," Caithe said simply, "If Destiny's Edge can spare you, then they can spare me too."

The Commander wanted to argue. He wanted to tell her to just go away, but he knew his temper would draw more questions. So he took a moment to breathe and mentally count to five before he said, in the calmest voice he could muster, "Fine. Go meet with Rox, we'll be leaving in just a moment."

Caithe nodded, and she headed off in that direction. Thankfully she didn't wait for him to follow, which gave the Commander a moment to just breathe and calm down. He needed to be calm, he couldn't let irritations from Caithe and Trahearne cloud his judgement, he was going to slip up and make mistakes if he did that. He just needed to breathe for a moment-

"Oh? Here's someone I didn't expect to see."

And he wasn't getting that moment. Damnit.

"What do you want, Canach," the Commander said, speaking much more harshly than he meant to.

Canach seemed to take it in stride, though, and he made a 'tsk'ing sound as he shook his head. "My, you certainly have a temper today. Has Caithe been prodding you again."

"She has, but that's not it. I just have a lot on my plate right now, and I'm trying to take care of it all." In truth it was no more than he had dealt with during Zhaitan, but the nature of some of his problems just seemed to irritate him.

"Oh? Well if your plate is too full, then perhaps you need someone to share it with?"

Was that innuendo? The Commander got the feeling that it was innuendo. Canach had been doing that a lot more often lately, ever since their time at Fort Trinity. He had a very funny idea of friendship if he thought that's what friends did. Though by his own admission Canach didn't have very many friends, so maybe he just didn't know any better.

Or maybe he did know better, and he knew exactly what he was doing.

The Commander gave Canach a flat look that went on for about a second longer than what would have been right for a comfortable stare. Then he raised a hand slightly, pointing it out towards Canach as he said, "Can you say one thing that isn't laced with innuendo?"

"Bah!" Canach threw his hands up in the air in resignation. "Nobody appreciates my help, I swear. But fine, have it your way." His voice returned to its normal tone, and he continued. "You look like you're heading out. Where are you going?"

"I'm not sure that's any of your business," the Commander said flatly.

"Suit yourself," Canach said with a shrug, "I'll just ask that little asura girl after you're gone. She likes me."

The Commander wanted to say that he doubted that, that Taimi wouldn't tell him a thing, but Taimi was indeed a fickle person. She could have ended up attached to Canach without the Commander realizing it. So instead he pointed a finger accusingly at Canach as he said, "Leave her alone. I'm trekking into the wastes."

"You saw what it's like out there. It'll get worse the farther you go." Canach tapped his chin thoughtfully, his voice turning to a curious one as he added, "You must have a damn good reason for returning there. Like…a dragon egg, maybe?"

Damnit. Why couldn't anything ever go his way? "Again, none of your business," the Commander said firmly, "Nor Countess Anise's."

That was the truth that they had been dancing around for some time now. The Commander knew that Canach was reporting back to Anise. He had been fine with it before, nothing he had been doing was classified. But now he was on a mission that really did need to be private, and while he may have given Canach a chance if he was a free man (he did keep everything at Southsun under wraps for years, after all), he absolutely did not trust a Canach that had to report back to someone else. As much as he would have liked to include Canach on this, he just couldn't.

And he was also trying not to think too much about the fact that he wanted to include Canach in the first place.

Canach, for his part, was giving the Commander an absolutely scathing look. His jaw was set, his body language tight, and when he spoke his words were sharp. "And here I thought you were the one preaching about the virtues of us being friends."

"Friends also keep secrets for one another," the Commander said simply, and he let his hand drop to his side before he turned to walk away, "Give Anise my regards."

It would be alright, he told himself. He just had to focus on his mission, and he could sort everything else out later. 

\---

**Dispatch to Anise, draft 1**

> The Pact is finishing preparations and will be moving out within the week. They number well over a thousand Pact troops, with the other three orders supplying another thousand men to their ranks. Most of the airships will be leaving with the first wave, though a few are staying behind to provide reinforcements where they are needed. The Commander will not be among the forces, he has located a dragon egg and is

**Dispatch to Anise, draft 2**

> The Pact is finishing preparations and will be moving out within the week. They number well over a thousand Pact troops, with the other three orders supplying another thousand men to their ranks. Most of the airships will be leaving with the first wave, though a few are staying behind to provide reinforcements where they are needed. The Commander will not be with them, as he is taking a small task force to complete a special

**Dispatch to Anise, final draft (sent by courier)**

> The Pact is finishing preparations and will be moving out within the week. They number well over a thousand Pact troops, with the other three orders supplying another thousand men to their ranks. Most of the airships will be leaving with the first wave, though a few are staying behind to provide reinforcements where they are needed. The Commander is not with the main forces, and I will be following him to see what he is up to.

**Dispatch to Canach (sent by courier)**

> Do what is needed, but return to Camp Resolve in time to launch with the main forces.
> 
> I know he is special to you. Do not let him become a distraction.

**Dispatch to Anise, draft 1**

> Do not presume that you understand anything about me, you wretched hag. You don't have a clue

**Dispatch to Anise, draft 2**

> I see the threat in that, don't you dare even think about

**Dispatch to Anise, final edit (sent by courier)**

> Understood.


	3. Distractions

The Commander crouched down, inspecting the sand and rocks in front of him. He wasn't a tracker by any means- that was why he had brought Rox with him, after all- but the markings he was seeing here and there concerned him greatly. Wherever these aspect masters were going, they were being followed by something very large. Something he was probably going to have to fight at some point. And with a group of just himself, Rox, and Caithe, he worried about their chances.

Not that any of them were terrible fighters, of course. The Commander had faith in his own skills, and he trusted Rox and Caithe implicitly. But their specific skillsets were better suited to quick, deadly strikes. A drawn-out battle with a large enemy was no good for any of them. They needed a heavy fighter or two to watch their backs in a fight like that. Sure, Braham was not far away, and they would be regrouping soon. But he was just one person, and having a second one with them would have been ideal.

"I don't like it," he said to his teammates, "It feels like we're walking into a dangerous situation without the necessary precautions."

"We don't always have the luxury of being well-prepared," Caithe said gently.

The Commander knew she was right, and that complaining wouldn't help, but he still felt like he had made a mistake in not asking a second heavy fighter to come along with them. Hell, Canach had been all too willing to help out, and the Commander had turned him down. Had that been a mistake?

A moment later the Commander decided that no, he had made the right decision. Even if it was not by choice, Canach reported to someone else. This required secrecy, and he had no doubts in his mind that this would not remain secret for long if Canach was involved. The first dispatch back to the countess would be the moment everyone found out about the dragon egg. Then it would be a diplomatic problem, one that would take months to clean up.

The Commander hated that. Things were so much simpler when he only had to answer to Trahearne and the Pale Tree. Now there were dozens of men and women who all wanted something from him, and if he didn't tread carefully he would end up offending someone. Talking instead of fighting was nice at first, but when those words hid daggers then it wasn't much of an improvement. At least dragonspawn had the decency to die when stabbed.

Fortunately, the Commander didn't have to dwell on those thoughts for long. Rox was quite adept at her job, and it wasn't long before they were on the trail again. But the good news of a fresh trail also came with a bit of trouble as well. "Unfortunately," Rox said, pointing back the way they had come, "We're not the only ones out here. There's a tagalong back there. Thankfully the winds shifted in our favor, and I smelled them before they got too close."

"There's someone following us," the Commander asked curiously, looking back in the direction Rox had pointed.

"Yeah. They smells of plants and blood in the way only a Sylvari does," Rox said with a nod.

A Sylvari following them…well, after what had been happening with Sylvari recently, it wasn't too much of a stretch to assume that another one would want to stop them. As much as the Commander hated to admit it, there definitely was some kind of connection to the Sylvari here. Or, at the very least, a group of people who wanted it to look like it was the Sylvari causing problems. "Are they pursuing us, you think?"

"It's hard to tell," Rox said honestly, "I haven't been able to see them. But whoever it is, they're keeping their distance. We've had to stop to look for tracks a few times now. If whoever is following us truly wanted to catch up to us, they would have been able to by now."

"Then it seems to me that they're keeping their distance on purpose," Caithe said.

That was a strange thought too. Who would want to follow them, but stay far enough back to not be seen? It must not have been anyone who wanted them dead, as this desert would have afforded many opportunities to kill all three of them and make it look like an accident. Maybe whoever it was happened to be after the egg instead? But if that were the case, they would have killed the group and continued forward on their own. So it had to be someone who was after the egg, but also wanted to keep the Commander and his group alive.

"Canach," the Commander said finally. He sighed in irritation as he pinched at the bridge of his nose, trying to stem off any headache before it got too strong. "I should have known that he would follow us the moment he mentioned the egg."

"How did he even find out about it," Rox asked, "None of us breathed a word of it to anyone."

" _Someone_ decided to mention the egg by name in a conversation when Canach was within earshot," the Commander said, shooting Caithe a glare.

In response, Caithe held up a hand in a way that looked like she meant to shush the Commander. "I did not know that he was not in on the secret. You two are close, so I thought he would be a part of the team sent to retrieve it."

"Well he's not," the Commander answered, perhaps a bit too sharply than he meant to, "And now we have to keep track of him as well."

"Why not invite him along formally? His strength would be a help." Caithe's thoughts were reasonable, and hearing them from a second source made the Commander wonder if he really should give Canach a chance. 

But a moment later he said, "No. He's reporting to Anise, and this is something I don't want the human nobles finding out about."

Caithe shrugged. "If you say so. But I think he would keep it a secret, if you just asked him."

"I'm not asking anything of him," the Commander said testily, "If he gets into trouble then we will stop and help him. But otherwise, if he wants to wander around the desert and make a fool of himself, let him."

Both Caithe and Rox gave the Commander a confused look, but it was Rox who ended up asking the unspoken question. "Why do we have to 'keep an eye out for him' in the first place?"

"Because-" She did have a point though. Canach was an adult, and he had a few decades of life experiences. He would be able to protect himself, he wasn't so stupid that he would get himself into trouble that he couldn't get himself out of. He was capable. 

So, why was the Commander concerned for his well-being?

"…it's complicated," he said a moment later, finishing his sentence, "Let's just keep moving."

The Commander only caught it out of the corner of his eye as he was turning around to keep walking, but he swore he saw Caithe make a gesture with her hands, and then Rox's eyes lit up with understanding. His mind jumped to all kinds of conclusions, mostly involving Caithe saying ridiculous things once more, but he decided that their current mission was much more important than correcting those ill-advised notions that Caithe had just put into Rox's mind.

\---

He had been right, of course. He found himself regretting how much he had been right lately. 

The Master of Sun was dead. The Master of Wind was hurt. The Master of Lightning was alright, but needed to return to the camp with the Master of Wind. And while none of this was technically the Commander's fault- the Masters would have been attacked with or without his presence in the Silverwastes- he still felt responsible for it all. If he had been faster, if he had kept his group together instead of splitting up to search…

"Do not feel burdened," the Master of Wind said weakly, drawing the Commander's gaze to him.

The Commander could only frown, though he was sure that frown didn't hide his regret. "I'm sorry about your friend."

"She's taken one great, last leap from our world into the next. I'll miss her warmth and light." The Master of Wind began to cough, and it lasted for several seconds before it subsided and he could talk again. "Thank you for your help here, and for your compassion."

The words were kind, and they did offer some bit of comfort. Even if things had gone wrong, at least it hadn't all been for naught. "Your kindness is…thank you." It felt awkward, to trip over his words in such a way. He had grown a lot since his first weeks of life, where he was still afraid of his Wyld Hunt and unsure of his place in the world. Returning to those old habits of his always felt awkward. He liked to think he was moving forward, not regressing, but tough situations brought out the worst in everyone it seemed.

The Commander spoke to the Master of Wind once more, saying, "Take care and get well," before he stood up. He took a moment to breathe, to regain control of himself, before he glanced to Rox and Caithe. In a more authoritative, more 'Commander'-ish voice, he said to them, "Let's split up and look for the Master of Peace's trail of symbols. Rox, you go ahead and tell the others of our plans. We'll need to regroup if we are to face more Mordrem like this one."

"No problem," Rox said in response, "We'll catch up with you soon."

"Good. Caithe, you stay with me. The two of us will look for the symbols, and hopefully have a trail by the time the others catch up." 

The Commander took a moment to glance back the way they had come, back towards the direction where Camp Resolve was. It looked like the desert was providing further obstacles for them to overcome. They would have to move quickly if they wanted to be back in time to launch with the Pact fleet.

'It's fine,' the Commander silently told himself, 'Even if I don't make it back in time, Trahearne can handle things. He's a good leader, and he has an army of good men and women at his side. Everything will be alright.'

\---

Canach was staying back away from the group on purpose. After that outburst from the Commander, he didn't want to risk whatever shaky attempt at friendship they had by revealing his presence before the Commander had calmed down. He planned to only jump in if it looked like the Commander was in over his head, but after that last fight he was starting to second-guess that plan. Maybe he should just get it over with and actually join the group. It had worked for Caithe, so maybe it would work for him.

But Caithe was like a mentor to the Commander, wasn't she? Canach didn't know all of the details, but he knew the stories: the Commander had awoken from his Dream with a particularly challenging Wyld Hunt, and Caithe (and later, Trahearne as well) had been there to help him through it. So they had a history, a much longer history than he and Canach had.

Canach scowled to himself. He had been trying to ignore that annoying voice in the back of his mind, but it was getting loud once more. The Firstborns were special to the Commander. The Firstborns got special privileges that most Sylvari could only dream of. The Firstborns could easily join the Commander's group, whereas a Secondborn like himself was not to be trusted.

No, he quickly told himself, that wasn't it at all. The Commander seemed to like Laranthier, and Laranthier was a Secondborn as well. It had to be because of Canach's status as a criminal, not because of his status as a Secondborn. Which did offer some relief, interestingly enough. Criminal acts could be atoned for, whereas a status of birth could never be changed.

It was weird, when he thought about it too much. Canach didn't particularly care about what most people thought of him. Why did he suddenly care so much now? The self-depreciating thoughts were normal by this point in his life, but it had almost always been focused internally, when he had his moments of weakness when he was too critical of himself. Was this what it meant to be friends with someone? That you cared what they thought of you, and when those thoughts were negative ones it ended up making you question everything about yourself?

Canach had the feeling that the answer was 'no', he had been friends with others in the past, and this had not happened with them. But he didn't really know what it could be, and he didn't care to search other memories in the Dream to reach an understanding. He never really liked that part of being a Sylvari anyway; he preferred to figure things out on his own, rather than rely on someone else's experiences.

_I know he is special to you. Do not let him become a distraction._

That note still burned a hole in Canach's pocket. He knew all too well what Anise could do if she really wanted something done. Canach's fears for the Commander's life were likely misplaced- even someone as powerful as a Countess couldn't make the Commander of the Pact disappear just because of a disagreement- but no matter what he tried to logically explain to his own mind those worries kept coming back. Even the thought of being responsible for the Commander's death, as indirect as it may have been, made his stomach turn. He couldn't let that happen. He couldn't get distracted.

He needed to figure out this egg business and get back to Camp Resolve. Even if the Commander didn't want him involved, he needed to be. The sooner he finished his work, the sooner he could pay off his billet and be free. Then he could work on repairing their friendship, as he was sure it would end up broken before Anise was done with him.


	4. Hunter and Hunted

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you're curious, the mission referenced in this chapter is 'Hunters and Prey' from the Personal Story. It's the first mission in the Priory plan to weaken Zhaitan during the story chapter 'Victory or Death'.

The Commander didn't like this. He hadn't seen any of his teammates in over an hour, and there had been no distress signal either. Where could they have gone? The Silverwastes were large, but his friends were strong and capable of navigating it without getting lost. They were also strong enough to fight off the Mordrem, so he wasn't worried about them being dead either. But if they weren't lost, and they weren't dead, then that meant something else had happened to them. That unknown factor, that is what worried the Commander the most. He didn't like having to make decisions without information on hand. That was always when he started to make mistakes. Mistakes which cost lives.

And it wasn't as if he was completely safe on his own either. Normally a necromancer could travel Tyria by themselves because their minions could offer as much protection as a band of mercenaries. But the Commander didn't use minions, not when he could avoid it. His talents were more focused on inflicting conditions on his enemies and boons on his allies, which made him a powerful leader (he could give commands and bolster his troops easily) but relatively weak on his own. His magic was useful at a distance, but Pale Mother help him if an enemy got close.

Maybe he should finally listen to Forgal's words and train with an actual blade, rather than relying solely on his staff. Being able to switch off, as many magic-users in Tyria did, could prove invaluable. 

But that was a worry for another time, he decided. For now, he needed to focus on finding his lost friends.

This section of the Silverwastes was new to the Commander, and he was sure that he was missing clues. He was moving too quickly, only giving a cursory scan of the area before moving on. Because of that, he managed to miss a rather suspicious-looking dip in the ground three times before he finally caught it on his fourth pass near one of the tall cliff walls. "What do we have here," he said curiously, walking forward carefully as the ground began to slant downwards, leading the Commander into a deep underground cave. A sense of dread settled into his stomach as he stepped out of the sunlight and into the darkness of the cave, and that dread only grew as he saw the path of twisting, thorny vines ahead of him.

Thankfully, he wasn't the only one who had found that cave.

"Thank the Pale Tree," Caithe said with a sigh of relief, jogging over a few steps to meet the Commander as he approached the wall of thick vines, "I was beginning to think that you would never find this place."

The Commander nodded, but his eyes were still trained on the vines, watching them with both caution and suspicion. "What happened here?"

"Your friends and I tracked the Master of Peace to this cave, but these vines erupted and separated us," Caithe said, looking back to the vines, "I was close enough to the entrance to escape, but the others…I cannot say."

The Commander felt his stomach twist into an uncomfortable knot. "They'll be fine, I'm sure. Is there a way in?"

Caithe pointed to a small gap in the vines. "There."

"We should go back for reinforcements. Destiny's Edge is still at the encampment, they could help-"

"No," Caithe said suddenly, cutting the Commander off, "As much as I would like to have their help right now, we don't have time to go back. There's something in here with us. Something large. I have no doubt that we could beat it as a team, but individually…"

"…it would pick us off, one by one," the Commander said, finishing Caithe's sentence for her, "Alright. Let's hurry and try to find the others, before the beast gets to us."

\---

What followed was one of the worst experiences of the Commander's life. 

He had been through a lot, what with being essentially the second-in-command of an entire army and all, and many times he had been on-edge and worried. But honest, undeniable fear was not an emotion the Commander frequently experienced. He could count on one hand the number of times where he had been so afraid that it had actually hindered his ability to fight, and this nightmare labyrinth of vines was on its way to increasing that count by one more.

The Commander hurried through the rows and rows of vines, trying to navigate around the dead ends and traps without drawing the attention of the horrible beast that lurked through the labyrinth's paths. Plans would not help. Safeguards would not help. All he could do was run, and hope that he found his friends before the monster found him.

He was being hunted, and that made the leaves on the back of his neck stand up.

_"There! That one's still alive!"_

_"Commander, wait!"_

_"We can't just leave him there, whoever is shooting at us will get to him!"_

_"Don't you see? This whole thing is glitched! We should have left as soon as we found the others in Ferghen's squad!"_

_"But he-"_

_"No…stop…t-trap…"_

"Commander?"

Caithe's words drew the Commander back to the present. A welcome respite from the memories that were probing at the back of his mind, threatening him with reminders of the last time he had been hunted like this. The mere memory of it was enough to send his heart racing.

"I'm fine," the Commander said, probably a little too quickly. But they were both breathing heavily from running so much, so he thought that she probably did not notice his lapse in attention. "As soon as we find Kasmeer and Marjory we can keep going."

"If you keep running like you are, then we won't have the energy to keep going," Braham said, speaking a bit too loudly for their situation since he was lagging behind the rest of the group.

"Just- just keep moving," the Commander said irritably, trying to push away Braham's complaints, "Marjory shouldn't be too far away, and once we find her we can finish this."

If they survived the labyrinth, that was. Which was increasingly becoming a doubt, rather than a sure-fire thing.

\---

Thankfully, they heard Marjory not too long after that. As the group ran down one of the paths, trying to take the long way around the horrible monster they could hear lurking about, they all heard a voice call out. "Hey! Is that you?"

The Commander slowed and glanced around, but he still couldn't see Marjory. "Jory! Is that you? Where are you?"

"I'm over here," Marjory called out, and now the Commander could pinpoint where the voice was coming from. This was confirmed when he stepped closer to one of the vine walls, and he heard Marjory speak more clearly as she said, "See if you can get around to me."

"Right, I'll be there in a moment," the Commander said, and he began trying to work his way around the wall, hurrying down the path in front of him in an effort to find a gap he could use.

The rest of the group went along with him, but his progress was slowed as he had difficulty finding a suitable path to Marjory's exact location. It was a labyrinth, he reasoned, of course it wouldn't be easy to navigate. But that didn't make him feel better, and it didn't sit well with his party members either.

"Could you hurry it up Boss," Braham said impatiently, "We don't have time to get turned around in here, it's hunting us down!"

_"Commander, you don't understand! He's hunting us down!"_

_"Just talk. What happened to your squad."_

_"There's no time! He's still out there! Don't you see? He's hunting us all down!"_

_"We can handle this, just stay with me, alright? I'll protect you."_

_"You can't promise that! We're not safe! Not from him, not from-"_

It was Rox's heavy hand on the Commander's shoulder that snapped him out of that memory, though not quickly enough to keep him from revisiting the sight of an arrow sticking out of that Vigil member's throat. That would be etched in his mind for another week at least, if not longer. 

"You don't look so good," Rox said, giving the Commander a worried look.

The Commander hesitated for a moment, glancing to the others. Caithe must have noticed too, what with how quickly she had looked away. Braham had moved on ahead, though, still looking for the gap that would take them to where Marjory was. Probably for the better, as the Commander hated looking weak in front of any Norn, especially Braham.

"I'm fine," the Commander said finally, pulling himself away from Rox's hand, "Hurry, Marjory is waiting."

And if he was breathing a little more heavily than usual- which he absolutely was- nobody dared to comment on it.

\---

It wasn't until after they found Kasmeer, and their little group had reunited, that the Commander could finally breathe a sigh of relief. They weren't in the clear yet, but at least they were all unharmed. Now all they had to do was find the Master of Peace, and they could finally get out of that damned labyrinth of vines. 

He gave Marjory and Kasmeer time to have their happy reunion, but after a moment he spoke to the whole group. "I'm glad we're all back together now, but we still have a mission to finish. Do any of you have any idea where the Master of Peace might be?"

"He's got to be in the center of this thing somewhere," Rox said, "We've been all around the outside, and we haven't seen any signs of him. The only place we haven't been is in the middle, right over there were the ground is raised up."

The Commander nodded to Rox. "That makes sense, but it's also risky. That could be the creature's den."

"If it's the creature's den, then the Master of Peace may already be dead," Caithe said, "And if that's the case, then the egg needs to be our priority."

"If the Master of Peace is dead, then the Mordem would be here no longer, as they would have taken the egg with them," the Commander pointed out, "The fact that they are still here tells me that the egg has not been located." Caithe seemed to agree with that at least, and she fell silent.

"We should hurry then," Marjory said, "Den or no, that's where we need to be. We'll just have to face whatever is there waiting for us."

With a final nod, the group moved out, heading towards the middle of the labyrinth. The closer they got to it, the more the ground inched upward, sending them up a long, gradual ramp that took them to the higher ground. Unsurprisingly, when they finally reached the top, they saw that the raised area was indeed a den of some sort. And deep within that den, opposite of where the group entered, was the Master of Peace. 

Caithe stepped forward first, moving towards the Master of Peace, but she stopped suddenly and jumped back. A moment later a giant, hideous Mordrem creation of some sort pounced on the spot she had just been standing. It let out a howl, and then it sped off to the shadows of the large den, leaving no sign as to where it was.

"Be careful," Caithe called out, "It's a predator of some sort, and it is no doubt hunting us."

A second later, Kasmeer screamed out as she was knocked off her feet by the Mordrem predator. All attention turned to it, but they all barely managed to get to it before it bounded off again, leaving a roughed-up Kasmeer to scramble to her feet.

"It-It's toying with us," she cried out, hiccupping uncontrollably in-between her words.

_"Did you see that? Someone's toying with us!"_

"Spread out," the Commander called out, pulling his staff off of his shoulder as he shook those painful memories away, "try to keep moving, don't give it a stationary target! If someone gets attacked, that's when you need to move in and strike!"

The Mordrem pounced again, but this time it's target- Braham- was able to roll to safety. That gave Rox a chance to bury an arrow in one of its legs, which made it howl in pain before it bounded off to the shadows again.

"This is no good," Braham said irritably as he watched the Mordrem run away, "It's hunting us, just dodging around it won't work forever!"

_"He started hunting us…He's unstoppable…a monster…"_

"Stay focused," the Commander said, nearly tripping over his own words there, "It wants to throw us off-balance. If we stay focused, we'll get it before it can get us."

The next two strikes went largely the same: the target was able to dodge out of the way, and the rest of the group managed to inflict some minor wounds to the Mordrem. But this seemed to only anger the beast more, and its attacks became more desperate.

Marjory was the first to fall. She was caught by an attack, thrown into a wall of vines with such force that she was knocked unconscious. The only thing the Commander could hear over the ringing in his ears was Kasmeer's scream, which momentarily threw him back into those memories of the past, of screams cut off by gurgling as soldiers drowned in their own blood. His soldiers, dead by his orders.

_"Did you see that? She's dead!"_

Shaking the memory out of his head, the Commander moved towards Marjory, intent on protecting her from further attacks. But as he moved Rox was the next victim, pounced on with enough force to knock the wind right out of her lungs. This gave Caithe an opening to deliver a particularly nasty blow to one of the Mordrem's back legs, one that left it limping.

It helped, but Rox would be out for the moment, leaving their group down one fighter.

_"Stay away! Someone help, please!"_

The Commander looked around in a frenzy, trying to predict where the Mordrem would attack from next. His breaths were short, and each one seemed to drain him of more air than it provided. His heart was going a mile a minute, and he felt like it would burst from his chest at any moment. 

He was afraid. His friends were falling, one-by-one, and he was afraid of losing them all. 

He was afraid of being the last one alive, the lone survivor to crawl out of that labyrinth, to make it back and tell the others what had happened.

_Breath heavy, heart pounding, but all he can do is hide. Everyone else is gone, and he can't tell where the arrows are coming from. Pale Mother help him, he doesn't want to die here-_

The Commander saw the Mordrem start to move, heading towards Kasmeer once more. He held out his staff, summoning up a cloud of darkness around her, preventing the Mordrem from seeing her. This seemed to work, and the Mordrem went skidding past, stopping suddenly with surprise.

_Don't let them die. They're counting on you. You can't fail them._

He rushed forward, not really sure of what he was even doing. He was a magic-user, not a soldier, and he had no business getting so close to the enemy. But he ran, letting his instincts carry him. 

The Mordrem turned and reared its head, aiming a bite right at the Commander.

The Commander heard the screams of his friends, warning him not to do it, but he didn't listen. He swung his staff around, like a swordsman winding up for a powerful strike, aiming right for the head that was about to bite him in half.

_Fight! **Live!**_

At the last moment, before the blow connected, the Commander noticed that the end of his staff was covered in these black shadows. Shadows that seemed to swirl and vibrate around, and had managed to shape themselves like the blade of a scythe.

The shadowy blade buried itself into the Mordrem's skull, killing it instantly. A rather quick death, given how much trouble the beast had been giving them. But it mattered little to the Commander, as he was only concerned with one thing: that everyone was alive.

Dropping to his knees, the Commander let the staff fall out of his hands. He was exhausted, and his whole body felt like jelly. That sheer fright that had come over him, that he had been fighting back against all day, it left him drained of energy. He was sure he would sleep for days, as soon as they were all somewhere safe.

"Boss!" 

The Commander looked up. Braham was kneeling near him, his face awash of worry. "You alright?"

Before answering, the Commander stole a glance around the den. Kasmeer had run over to Marjory, who was finally starting to wake up. Rox was also pushing herself to her feet, though she was holding her midsection as if she had a broken rib or two. Caithe was hurrying over to the Master of Peace, no doubt to check on him, but she seemed otherwise alright. Finally, he looked up to Braham, and he nodded. "Yeah. That was…unexpected, but I'll be fine."

Grinning finally, Braham offered the Commander a hand. "You sure did a number on that thing, Boss."

Taking the hand, the Commander said, "Well, you did rough it up for me first."

"Caithe! Wait! What do you think you're doing?"

That shout- from Marjory, actually- was enough to draw the Commander's attention over to the Master of Peace. He was weakly raising his hands to Caithe in protest, but Caithe paid him no mind. Instead, she said, "There's no time to explain," and picked up the egg. 

That time, the Commander himself called out to her. "Caithe, wait!"

But before anyone could stop her, she disappeared into the shadows, heading off to who knows where. The Commander didn't know what to do. A flash of betrayal burned through him, making his chest squeeze tightly. He had trusted Caithe. He had trusted her to help him. So why had she run off with it? Why had she left him to deal with the fallout from all of this?

Speaking of which…

The Commander hurried over to the Master of Peace, and he kneeled down next to him. "I'm sorry," he said, the regret showing clearly on his face, "I don't know what she's doing."

The Master of Peace shook his head. He tried to speak, but his words came slow. "You're our only hope. Listen closely…I…that egg, I was supposed to protect it…you must get it back. The egg…you must…understand…its importance to Tyria's future…"

"I'll get it back," the Commander said, "I promise."

"Please…" And with that, the Master of Peace fell silent. 

It took all of the Commander's willpower to stay composed.

\---

As much as Canach liked the desert, he was really starting to hate spending time in it. It was so hard to track people through the sands, especially when said people were probably lost themselves. It was lucky that Sylvari didn't get sunburns like humans did, or else he was sure he would be redder than a tomato.

But he had finally found a strange path that seemed to slope downwards, going deep into the ground. An underground cave, perhaps? Whatever it was, the Commander's footprints led into it, and that was where he needed to go.

As he started to go in, though, he nearly ran into Caithe. She was running out of the cave, carrying a strange wrapped bundle in her arms. Whatever she was running from, she seemed to have no time to talk, and likely would have run right by Canach if he hadn't drawn his shield and immediately rushed to her, knocking her back with it. She stumbled into a cave wall, but it did seem to knock some sense into her, so to speak, as she just gave him a look.

"And where do you think you're going," Canach said in an accusatory voice. She had been with the Commander, so why wasn't he running alongside her?

"There's no time to explain," she said, holding the bundle closer to her chest, "Something terrible is going to happen, and soon. I need to take care of this before it's too late."

"And what is that, exactly? A dragon's egg?" Caithe's silent, narrowing look told Canach that the answer to his question was a resounding 'yes', so he said, "If you really mean well, then why is the Commander not with you?"

"The Commander means well, but he can't move as fast as I can," Caithe answered, "And he is…young. I may not make it in time, and if he is with me, he may be a liability."

Canach snorted at that. His personal biases aside, the Commander was one of the most skilled soldiers in the Pact. He failed to see how the Commander could possibly be a liability. 

"I'm serious," Caithe said, answering Canach's unspoken challenge, "You didn't see how he was acting. He's already distracted, and the worst is yet to come."

"Then I should accompany you instead," Canach said, "If his youth is a problem, then I should be an adequate traveling partner."

Caithe shook her head. "No. Things are going to get very bad very fast, and he's going to need you. Stay here."

"He has other friends," Canach pointed out.

"This is different," Caithe said, "It needs to be a Sylvari, one strong enough to show him that he won't fall. I would take care of it myself, but-" She indicated to the bundle in her arms. "I'll be indisposed."

That certainly got Canach's attention. "Why a Sylvari? What's going to happen?"

"You'll find out soon enough," Caithe said, and suddenly she bolted, dodging right around Canach as he tried to knock her back once more. Damn. He really should have been paying more attention.

He turned to pursue her in back into the desert, but he stopped after a few steps. Thieves were fast, and there was no way Canach could keep up with her in heavy armor. Besides that, Caithe's words worried him. As much as he disliked the Firstborn in general, Caithe's words sounded like a serious warning, one that he should listen to. And besides that, she had been the one to…

Canach shook his head. There was no point in dwelling on the past, not when there were other matters to attend to.

Turning around once more, Canach hurried into the dark tunnel, intent on finding the Commander.


	5. An Intimate Gesture

The Commander let Marjory tend to the fallen Master of Peace as he paced, trying to collect his thoughts. Caithe was gone. The egg was gone. He had no way of finding her, much less stopping her. What was she thinking? They all wanted to protect this egg, so surely she could have trusted them!

The only reassurance he had was that Caithe wouldn't bring harm to the dragon egg on purpose. She had been good friends with Glint, and this was essentially Glint's child. Caithe was a lot of things, but cruel wasn't one of them. No, she had to have a plan in mind. Maybe it was something she had to keep secret. Or maybe it was something related to Destiny's Edge. They had been the original protectors of Glint, after all, it would make sense for them to protect her egg.

So, the Commander could let Caithe go for the moment. He would definitely catch up to her and demand answers later, but he could take a moment to stop and plan. Having a plan was vital, so that they didn't rush in blindly and get killed.

Just like they almost had in the labyrinth. 

The Commander sighed and rubbed at his temples. Going back to Camp Resolve seemed like the best course of action, he might be able to catch up with Destiny's Edge there and get some answers. But if they were in on this too, then they might not even be there. And if they weren't, and if nobody at the camp knew where they were, then he wasn't sure where to go from there. 

"Heads up," Rox said, drawing the Commander away from his thoughts. He looked up to Rox, and then followed her line of sight to the path that wound up around the platform they were on. He looked just in time to see a familiar person make it to the top of the ramp.

"...Canach?" If the Commander sounded downright befuddled by Canach's sudden appearance, that's because he was. "What are you doing here?"

"Making sure you don't get killed," Canach said flatly.

Of course he was. The Commander was about to say some kind of rude comment in response, but he stopped suddenly as he realized something. If Canach had just arrived, then he must have passed Caithe on his way in. "Tell me, did you see Caithe?"

"I did, actually," Canach said. He stopped just in front of the Commander, finishing the circle of people there. "She said some nonsense about 'there's no time to explain' and 'the Commander needs you'. But she was being dishonest, I take it?"

"Extremely dishonest," Braham said bitterly, "Why didn't you try to stop her?"

"Oh yes, I should have known to stop her, what with the grand total of 0 contacts I have had with your group since you arrived. Really, how foolish of me to not know information I wasn't told." Oddly enough, Canach's dry sarcasm was almost a comfort then. Almost.

But this wasn't the time to appreciate good wit. No, there was too much that needed to be done and not enough time to do it in. So the Commander said, "Save it you two, we have a lot of loose ends that need tying up."

"What's this 'you two' business? He's the one starting things," Braham said, pointing accusingly at Canach. "He shouldn't even be here in the first place, you told him not to come!"

That insult could not go challenged, though. Canach spoke up right away, saying, "And when have I ever listened to someone else's orders?"

"You certainly take orders from that countess-"

Braham's snappy response was interrupted by the Commander as he firmly said, "I said _save it_."

"The Commander's right," Kasmeer said, speaking up for the first time, "Now's not the time or place. Can't we all just agree that this is Caithe's fault and move on?"

"Caithe isn't the enemy here," the Commander snapped, "And treating her like such will only slow us down. She is not our enemy, she is just misguided, and we need to find her to figure out what is going on."

Rox gave the Commander a sad look, and she spoke calmly as she said, "Commander, I hate to break it to you, but I think she actually is our enemy now. She stole the egg."

"But she's not going to harm it! She just-" The Commander stopped suddenly. He sighed as he ran a hand through his ferns, hand shaking as he did so. His nerves were beginning to creep up on him again, he could tell. "This is what she does: she tries to solve a problem on her own without asking for help. We need to convince her that she does need help, that's all."

Rox didn't sound convinced, though. "That may be, but she's playing a dangerous game here. All on her own she could be caught, or killed, and who knows what might happen to that egg. This is bigger than just her."

"You think I don't know that? Pale Mother, Rox, I've been trying to keep this group together for- hey!" The Commander's rant was cut off halfway through as Canach suddenly stepped over and picked him up. He threw the Commander over his shoulder, carrying him as one might carry a sack of potatoes, an act that made the Commander struggle to try and get free of Canach's grasp. "Put me down this instant!"

But Canach merely tightened his grip on the Commander's waist as he said, "If you'll excuse me, I need to speak to the Commander in private for a moment." And he promptly turned and started walking down the ramp and back towards the entrance to the labyrinth. 

The entire act of just picking the Commander up and carrying him away must have stunned everyone else, because from what the Commander could see none of them were trying to follow. Even the Commander's protests were met with stunned silence. 

\---

For all of the Commander's squirming, he really was a small man, and Canach had absolutely no trouble holding onto him. This ridiculous man clearly needed to strengthen his arms if he wanted to be able to fight without using his magic. But that wasn't what this was about, so Canach didn't mention it then. Instead he just kept walking, all the way out of the labyrinth and up the incline to the surface. He stayed in the shade as he walked, though, not wanting to subject either of them to the scorching desert heat. 

Finally he reached the spot he was looking for: a small patch of flat rocks and sand that was shaded by the canyon wall, but also in such a place that Canach would see any enemies long before they got close to them. That was where he unceremoniously dumped the Commander on the ground, and he stood there watching as the Commander scrambled to move to a sitting position.

"What was that for," the Commander demanded, glaring up at Canach.

"Were you even aware that you were maybe five seconds from an outburst of violence and screaming," Canach answered, glaring down at the Commander in return.

Interestingly enough, that was enough to stop the Commander in his tracks, his glare turning to a look of confusion. So Canach continued to speak, explaining his actions more clearly now that they were in private. "You and your so-called 'friends' get into a feedback loop with each other all the time. First you disagree with each other, then someone raises their voice, and the other person raises theirs in return. I could see it in your eyes, Commander, you were ready to punch someone."

"So you picked me up and carried me out of a cave in response," the Commander asked incredulously.

Canach shrugged. "You needed some fresh air," was his response, and then he moved to sit next to the Commander. "And fresh air you shall have, until you are ready to approach the others with a cool head."

Those words didn't seem to work, though. The scowl was back, and the Commander was speaking once more, his voice rising just as it had before with Rox. "I don't have time for this, Canach! I have to follow after Caithe and find out what she has-"

The Commander had started to stand up, but before he got far Canach grabbed him by the shoulder and forced him back down. "Breathe," he said.

"I can breathe just fine! Now let me go-" And the Commander was trying to stand up again, this time pulling away from Canach first to try and avoid being forced down again.

In response, Canach sighed loudly as he reached over and grabbed the Commander, pulling him into his lap. Or, more accurately, the space between his legs, as he was forming a shield of sorts around the Commander so that the Commander couldn't get away easily. The Commander's back was to Canach's chest, and Canach's arms were wrapped loosely around the Commander, holding him in place. "Breathe," he repeated, "Everything else can wait."

That got a more positive response from the Commander, at the very least. He made an irritated noise and tried to smack at Canach's hands, but he didn't try to pull away. He just sat there, stewing in his anger. He was muttering under his breath too, but Canach couldn't quite make out what he was saying. It didn't really matter anyway, so long as it helped to calm the Commander down.

But amazingly, it worked. It took a bit of time, but the anger seemed to drain away from the Commander the longer they sat in silence like that. And as the Commander relaxed, he ended up leaning back against Canach's chest, though he kept his head upright and not leaning against any part of Canach. He couldn't quite see the Commander's face from their position, but if he had to guess he would have thought that the Commander's eyes were closed too.

It was incredibly intimate, Canach realized suddenly. Far more intimate than he had meant for it to be. It took trust to be able to relax like that, trust Canach hadn't thought that he had earned. Maybe he had misunderstood the Commander's previous rejection of him.

They sat for several minutes like that, Canach listening to the Commander's gradually-steadying breathing as the Commander calmed down. It was a rather peaceful moment, one Canach would have liked to stretch on for far longer. But there wasn't time for that, unfortunately. As much as he would have liked to spend the afternoon like that (a thought that was pretty alarming, Canach just wasn't one for PDA like that, even if it was platonic in nature) he knew that there was much to be done. So finally Canach spoke up, saying, "Feeling better?"

"Very much so," the Commander responded, his voice much calmer than it had been before. It sounded a lot like the old Commander, the one Canach had spoken with back at the Vigil Keep, back before all of this trouble had gotten worse. It was a comforting tone to hear. 

Then the Commander turned his head slightly to glance over his shoulder at Canach, and he said, "How did you know to do that?"

"It is merely a trick I picked up in my travels," Canach said, being vague on purpose so as to not reveal that he had learned it in rather, well, 'intimate' situations. He was sure that the Commander was happier not knowing that. "Everyone needs a break sometimes, and sometimes those breaks come more easily if one feels reassured."

He let go of the Commander, giving the smaller man room to move out of Canach's lap. Which he did, after a moment, though that moment lasted just a touch too long to be mistaken for anything but hesitation. Canach couldn't help but smirk to himself. So the Commander liked feeling safe in someone else's arms, did he? That was useful to know.

\---

It wasn't just the safety that the Commander liked about sitting like that. It was the touch too.

He hadn't realized it, but it had been ages since he had been touched by anyone. Sure, Kas gave hugs from time to time, and many of his friends were all for patting each other on the back as a form of congratulations. But those were all quick touches, not longer ones like Canach had just given him. 

Being held like that…it did make him feel safe, yes. It did calm him down. But it also reminded him of just how touch-starved he really was, and how good it felt to just sit there, touching someone else. Even if it hadn't been a romantic gesture (at least, the Commander was assuming that Canach had no romantic inclinations towards him), it had been an exceedingly intimate one, and the implications of that were not lost on him.

He wanted to touch people a lot more than he had been for the last few years. Not necessarily in a sexual way, but just…touching. Hugging. Holding each other. Physical contact in general. The Commander had forgotten how much he liked to be in physical contact with people, and being in physical contact with someone had only served to stir up those feelings that had been left buried. Touching people felt nice, and he wanted more of it.

No, not people. If Rox or Braham or even Marjory had done this for him, it wouldn't have had the same meaning. It wouldn't have left him feeling flustered and unwilling to get moving.

He wanted to touch _Canach_ specifically.

The Commander turned back to Canach, offering him a hand to stand up. "We should grab the others and head back," he said.

Hopefully Canach didn't notice the Commander's awkwardness there. And, more importantly, hopefully Canach didn't notice the dark green blush that was creeping up the Commander's neck as he began to realize a few things about himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh look the Commander caught a feeling. He's screwed now.


	6. The Road Splits

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, I'm back to this! I got stuck horribly on this part (and the rest of this section of the story, if I'm being honest) and it took me ages to work out just where I wanted to go with this. I think I finally have it worked out, so updates should be semi-regular now. They'll be faster once we hit the Heart of Thorns part of the story, because I already know exactly what I'm doing with that section.
> 
> Also, you might notice some new tags on this fic. One of the major plot points for this series was just made non-canon by Path of Fire, and re-writing everything around that would take too long. So this is now a canon divergent fic.
> 
> Updates will still be slow, as I'm working on something special for an event in the Overwatch fandom in addition to work and everything else, but hopefully not "3 months between chapters" slow.

Caithe did not return to Camp Resolve, a fact which the Commander quickly found as soon as he started asking around. Or, at the very least, if she had returned then nobody had seen her. The Commander was willing to give more weight to that latter idea, given how good Caithe was at sneaking around. If she really was in a hurry, she would have made sure to be as invisible as possible, if only to avoid any interruptions. And given how she hadn't even stopped for five seconds to explain why she had to take the egg, she surely didn't have the time to be interrupted by anyone.

But when he heard that even Eir, Zojja and Logan hadn't seen her, that made him worry. At the very least, he would have expected the rest of Destiny's Edge to be in on whatever Caithe was doing. They had been a guild since long before the Commander was even born, and even if they had fought each other for years they had been on good terms for some time now. If Caithe was involved in any kind of plan, then surely she should have told her guild about it ahead of time, right? No person could operate alone, everyone needed help now and again. But the shake of a head and some worried looks from the rest of Destiny's Edge told the Commander all he needed to know: Caithe was operating on her own.

The more important question was why? Why did she feel the need to do this on her own?

"This is going nowhere fast," the Commander said, scooting up onto one of the crates nearby. He had been running nonstop since that morning, when they had set off for the labyrinth, and the dull complaints had turned into sharp whining that threatened to take the Commander out for the rest of the night. It was annoying, he had too much to do to be hindered by the limitations of his own body!

The others seemed to be having similar problems, it seemed. Rox had taken up a seat on the ground, Frostbite making a little spot next to her to sit on. Braham wasn't sitting, but he was definitely leaning against that crate, and he wasn't fooling anyone if he thought he was being sneaky about it. Marjory and Kasmeer had found a spot to sit next to each other as well, holding hands as they whispered tired thoughts to each other. And Canach…well. The Commander couldn't be sure that he was as tired as the rest, since he hadn't been with them for most of the day, but the way he shuffled his weight from one side to the other seemed to indicate that he too had seen his fair share of traveling. 

The Commander was tempted to tell his friends to rest, to give them a good night's sleep to recover before they began the task of searching for Caithe. She had been traveling all day as well, so she would need to stop and rest eventually. If they all kept their sleep short, then they theoretically wouldn't lose much time. But the Commander knew that they didn't have time to sleep right now, they needed to keep moving. They could catch quick naps on transports and such, but sleeping in a bed was a luxury they couldn't afford right then.

But where would they go? They couldn't just scour the desert for her, there were too many Mordrem around to do so safely. They needed a clue to move forward.

Looking to his friends, the Commander gave them a weak smile as he said, "Well, I'm open to suggestions, if anyone has any ideas."

That got a rumble of laughter from Rox, at least. Some of the others managed a smile as well, but everyone was just too tired for actual laughing. Braham was the one who spoke up first, saying, "We can't pull soldiers from the Pact to go looking for her, so just looking for her isn't going to help. And every second we sit here, Caithe just gets further and further away."

The Commander nodded to Braham. It was exactly what he had been thinking, and he was sure the others knew it as well, but getting that out in the open was important. 

Rox was the next to speak up, saying, "I'd say we should sleep on it and start with a clear head in the morning, but that might just make things worse. If Caithe is going somewhere nearby, she might reach it before we wake up."

"If Caithe is going somewhere nearby, then searching for her might actually yield some results," Marjory interjected, "But she might have a long trip ahead of her too."

"Yeah, I know. And since we don't know which it is, any move we make is a gamble." Rox paused there for a moment, scratching at her chin as she thought things over. She was clearly mulling over something, and the Commander gave her time to think about it. Rox usually had some good insight, so he was curious to see what plan she was thinking up. Finally, Rox said, "We know she hasn't used any of the Asura gates, since those are closely guarded here. Wherever she's going, it's on foot. I'd say we should use the gates to get to where she usually hides out and wait there for her. If she needs to disappear, she's going to go somewhere she knows is safe."

Braham shook his head in response. "She won't go where she knows we'll go looking for her. If she's going somewhere to hide, it's going to be a place we don't know about. And that's assuming she isn't planning to meet up with someone else already."

The pause that followed that statement was extremely uncomfortable. Kasmeer and Marjory looked to the Commander, while Rox shot Braham a confused look. Canach was also watching Braham, but his expression was largely unreadable at the moment. He was keeping things stoic, so that nobody would know what he was thinking. The Commander thought he saw the barest hints of a frown, though.

Not that it mattered after Braham spoke, though, because the Commander's attention was immediately drawn to the Norn. "What is that supposed to mean," he asked.

Braham frowned at the Commander in return. "It means we don't know if we can trust her. A lot of Sylvari have been turning up traitor lately, and whatever got to them may have gotten to her too."

The Commander felt a white-hot flash of anger rush through his body. He steeled himself, sliding off the crate he sat on and standing up tall. He gave Braham a serious look as he said, "Caithe is a Firstborn and one of the leaders of the Sylvari community. She is one of the wisest of us, nobody could just 'get to her' like that." He spoke calmly, but it was a very restrained calm. Even the suggestion that Caithe might turn against them was highly offensive, especially to the Commander, who owed so much to her.

Braham wouldn't be deterred, though. He stood up straight as well, easily towering over the very short Commander. Which wasn't that difficult, truthfully; even if Braham had been a Sylvari instead of a Norn, pretty much every Sylvari easily outmatched the Commander in terms of height. He really was 'the littlest brother'. But what he lacked in size he made up for in spirit, and the standoff looked like a clash of equals rather than one person being overbearing to the other.

"Anyone can be gotten to," Braham said simply, "Anyone. Especially an 'elder' who isn't even 30 yet."

"Age does not beget wisdom," The Commander snapped back, "Caithe might be a bit misguided in her attempts to do everything on her own, but she has good intentions. She needs our help, not our accusations."

"And that's exactly what will kill us all if she's turned traitor," Braham snapped back, "We can't trust her, we should be tackling this as if she's a fugitive on the run, not a friend who needs help."

"Careful there," Canach said testily. 

At that, Braham turned on Canach, saying, "What, are you going to sing praises for Caithe as well?"

Canach scoffed at that. "Hardly. I dislike the Firstborn as much as you do. In fact, I find it rather distasteful that you would compare a fugitive to a Firstborn. As least fugitives don't have an over-inflated sense of self-worth."

A snort of laughter, followed quickly by a hiccup, drew everyone's attention back to the pair of humans sitting nearby. Kasmeer in particular looked horribly embarrassed, and she quickly said, "Sorry," before covering her mouth to keep in the hiccups that followed. 

It was an effective diversion, though. With both Canach's dry joke and Kasmeer's response, the heat was taken off of that argument and the Commander's anger began to drain away, leaving behind a pang of guilt. Here he was, fighting with the people he trusted the most. What kind of leader was he, if he couldn't keep that anger in check? Hell, what kind of _friend_ was he, if he rose to arguments like that?

Thankfully, Marjory was quick to fill that moment of silence. "Infighting isn't going to help," she said, scolding both Braham and the Commander. Both of them had the sense to look at least a little ashamed, too. "We're going around in circles here, and we need some guidance. The Sylvari are all connected by the Dream, right? So why don't one of you two just try to contact her that way?"

The Commander and Canach both glanced to each other. No words were spoken, but the look they shared was enough for both to reach an understanding: that wouldn't work at all, and explaining why it wouldn't work would just be too confusing to anyone who didn't experience the Dream. So when the Commander looked back to Marjory, his explanation wasn't the full truth, but it brushed up against it. "That won't work. We're all connected, yes, but it shares memories, not current thoughts. I might be able to find what she experienced that made her decide to steal the egg in the first place, but I won't know exactly where she is going."

Canach backed up the Commander, saying, "He's right. And he is much more in-tune with the Dream than I am, so if he cannot do it then I definitely can't."

That struck the Commander as odd. He looked back to Canach once more, his confusion very apparent on his face. He opened his mouth to speak, to ask Canach if he was Soundless, but Canach gave a quick 'no' gesture with his hand. A conversation for another time, then.

Thankfully, that quick exchange was mostly unseen by the non-Sylvari of the group. They were ready to continue the conversation, and Rox was the one to speak up next. "What about the Pale Tree," she asked, "If she made all of you, then surely she can see into the Dream and find out where Caithe is."

"She is still weak from the attack," the Commander said, hesitating slightly as he spoke. This was a topic near and dear to him, and while that worry had been temporarily shelved while they dealt with other things, it was still a worry. The Pale Tree wasn't out of harm's way yet, and she still might die from the injuries she received. "I…am hesitant to ask anything of her, while she is still recovering."

"It's the best option we have right now," Marjory said, "We have to at least try. She's given you visions before, she might be able to do so now. And even if she can't, she knows Caithe best. She might have some advice on where to look for her."

That logic was sound, at least. And talking probably wouldn't be too strenuous, if they kept the conversation short. And besides that, the Commander did want to check on her, to see how she was doing. It seemed like a good idea, or at least better than what they had to go on so far.

"Alright," The Commander said finally, "That will be a quick trip at least, since we can use Asura gates to reach the Grove. I'll go, I think I can get an audience with Mother even while she is sick."

"I'll go with you," Marjory said, standing up finally, "I think we should split up into two groups though. Caithe might still be around here, and having someone here to catch her if she turns up would be good."

Kasmeer, with her hiccups finally under control, nodded as she said, "I'll stay here then. If she does turn up, we might need my illusions to trick her into getting caught."

"And you'll need the muscle to actually catch her," Rox said, "So I'll stay."

"Me too," Braham said. He didn't elaborate on why, but he really didn't need to. This wasn't the first spat Braham and the Commander had been in, and it was clear that they needed time away from each other to calm down and find it in themselves to apologize to each other. This was a song and dance they both knew well, what with both of them being stubborn.

Canach's response, however, was the one that surprised the Commander the most. "I think I'll stay as well," he said, "I am not on good terms with Mother, and I do not wish to see her now."

That was a problem indeed. The Commander had a million things on his mind right then, but 'talking to Canach about what happened between them' had a pretty high priority. It wasn't at the top of the 'do this now' list, but it was solidly in the top ten. Their travel to the Grove would have given them a small amount of time to talk and sort things out. Or so the Commander had hoped, at least.

But that wasn't to be, it seemed. The Commander was disappointed, but that conversation would have to wait until later. "Alright," he said, covering up his disappointment, "Marjory and I will go to the Grove, everyone else will stay here and keep an eye out for Caithe. Any questions?"

Kasmeer raised her hand. "What if the Pact starts to leave before you get back?"

"Then remain here," the Commander answered, "The Pact has plenty of soldiers, and at least part of Destiny's Edge will be with them. I'm going to need your help in tracking down Caithe."

"Does that same courtesy extend to me," Canach asked, a touch of a snide tone present in his question.

It was silly, but it was enough to get an actual reaction out of the Commander, who just sighed tiredly as he said, "Yes, I know you report to someone else Canach. If the Countess doesn't have other plans for you, I would like to have you stay with the group as well. We could use the extra muscle."

If the mention of Anise bothered Canach at all, he didn't show it. The Commander was just too tired to read too much into Canach's expressions at the moment. He really was going to need rest soon, he decided. Once they had the clue on where to find Caithe, maybe he could do it. Trying to look in the Dream for clues wasn't a completely terrible idea either, it just wouldn't yield the results the others were expecting. 

"If everyone is done here, then let's move out," the Commander said, "Stay in touch, and alert the others if anything comes up. Remember: we're a team, and we need to work as one if we're going to find Caithe. She's too much for any one person to handle on their own."

\---

**Dispatch to Anise (sent by courier)**

>   
>  Back at Resolve. Search inconclusive, the Commander is keeping his intentions quiet.  
> 

**Dispatch to Canach (sent by courier)**

>   
>  Stay there for the time being. Launch with the Pact when they leave, and report back regularly on the fighting.  
> 

**Dispatch to Anise (sent by courier)**

>   
>  Understood.  
> 

**Dispatch to Canach (sent by courier, subsequently burned and left at the bottom of a canyon)**

>   
>  And if the Commander gets unruly, just hug him into submission again. It sounds like that worked well last time.  
> 


End file.
